How to prepare partner round if lacking "local knowledge"?

Question

As a foreigner, I'm interviewing with a consulting firm at an emerging country. I can speak the local language fluently but I've never lived in the country and lack the local market knowledge. The business model in this emerging country is very different from developed countries.

I interviewed with one partner today, and was asked many questions that would require some form of local knowledge. For instance, “what is the major difference between brand A and brand B (both are local brands)? What are the success factors of brand A? Do you think we should invest in brand A?, etc”.

Though being “structured” in brainstorming is important, I feel that these questions are testing the understanding of local market instead of "general consulting skill set. My lack of local knowledge seems to put me in a disadvantage. I also think asking too much questions to the partner about the local company makes me seem “dumb” - it's like asking what is LV to a French person.

Could you share your experience if you have faced similar situation? How could I better prepare for the next partner round? Thank you!

Answer 1

Hi there,

This is a great question!

On a first note, for most consulting firms, your ‘knowledge of the local market’ is not one of the dimensions they assess. They're rather interested in more transferable skills such as problem-solving, prioritisation, etc. So, if you happen not to know much about the market, asking smart, structured questions that are backed by a hypothesis is the best thing that you could do.

If you want to improve your knowledge of the market, I suggest you do a couple of things:

1. Reach out via LinkedIn or your network to consultants operating in that market. Take them out for coffee or connect over a call and ask them to give you a quick download of the main dynamics on the market

2. Read industry papers / articles published by the company you are interviewing with. They usually publish stuff as part of their reach and relevance efforts and it's always based on stuff that they're actively working on (thus likely that they'll ask you about).

3. Read the business newspapers, scan the headlights and get a sense of the main things that are happening at the moment.

Good luck!

Answer 2

Largely agree with the answers of the other coaches.

Would like to add that in general - true for most consulting firms - you will not be assessed, based on your knowledge about a certain market - but based on your raw capability. That said, especially as a foreigner, you will get plus points when you seem to know the local characteristics well, as it lends proof to your commitment and genuine interest in a certain office.

Make sure you gather facts on the following..

1. Key industries relevant to a market + what the firm's local office mostly focuses on

2. Important local players across those industries

3. Demographics and basic geography & history, natural resources etc

Spend a few hours researching on the above before your interview rounds - that should suffice. But again, rehearsed knowledge will usually not be a critical determinant for you interview success.

Hope this helps.

Regards

Answer 3

Hi there,

I was in exactly the same position and it's a non-issue.

When I interviewed with McKinsey in Chile, I didn't even speak Spanish very well (FYI - I am German and my wife is Chilean, hence the location). The recruitment team was very accommodating because they knew I would soon enough learn both language and everything there is to know about the region.

During the interviews, which they kindly conducted in English, interviewers only cared about the skills they're actually testing for. That does not include any actual “knowledge” about any industry, geography, etc.

Little side note: the Partners that interviewed me were from Germany, Chile and Denmark. I started talking about Copenhagen with the Danish Partner because I used to live and work there, which was pretty funny. Offices are often mixed like that, both in emerging/established regions.

Hope this helps a bit! Best of luck!

Answer 4

If you don't live in the country, there isn't much you can do and the expectation shouldn't be there in the first place.

So you should have a very good understanding of economic and demographic indicators, population distribution around the country, major industries, etc.

What you can and should also do is to have some understanding of some industries that are easier to gain through outside research - banking, energy, telecom are a must, as well as knowing who are the top 10-15 companies in the country. If it is about consumer goods, I don't think there's much you can do about it (other than chatting with a local to get their perspective on multiple sectors).

Finally, if you are serious about living in a certain country, there is the chance that you have visited it in the past… (or that you visit when you go there for an interview?) you have to take those opportunities to visit the commercial areas, supermarkets, etc.

Answer 5

Hi there,

I fully agree with the colleagues' answers, and would just add one piece of advice: whenever I am insecure about something or feel like I am in a disadvantaged position, I try to flip the weakness and turn it into a strength. I wouldn't hide my inexperience with the local market, but (on top of learning about and showing the eagerness to master it, as already mentioned by the colleagues), highlight how your previous experience has prepared you for working there, what insights from your market you could bring (if you are from a more developed country, chances are, your country has already gone through the economic trends awaiting this new country, so you have a “time traveller advantage”). Just think about what makes you unique and use these unique points to boost your positioning.

Hope this helps and good luck!

Answer 6

Hi there,

Let me flip a question back to you: If you don't know something, what do you do?

Go and research! Google everything you can about this country. Read books, read articles, read CultureAtlas (and awesome resource of learning about countries), etc.

There's no other answer than the obvious - your problem is local knowledge…so go and build your local knowledge!

Good luck!